June 15, 2014
There is so much to see and do in Yellowstone National Park that I quickly got over the offensive remark by the camp ranger that I was considered a “snack” for the bears in these areas.  He was making a joke, of course, but it was not to be taken too lightly.  There are Black bear and Grizzly bear throughout the park and camp areas too!  We saw a Grizzly from VERY far away and did not see others. But, it is very common for them to be near the roads.  Wyoming is heaven for tons of wildlife…

How about a Buffalo chip with some dip?  Poop is everywhere.  And, Bison turds become so hard that Indians and prairie settlers used it for firewood when they didn’t have wood around! It is called “buffalo chips” or “meadow muffins”.  Okay, enough with the poop, but you can’t blame me for being infatuated with it.

Yellowstone is the very first National Park in the WORLD!  It is such a huge park that it sits in three different states: Wyoming, Montana and Idaho.  You will see more geysers and springs here than anywhere else on earth.

Norris is the hottest hydrothermal area of the park.  I saw it.  The water in the bubbling mud puddles were boiling!  We were told to keep a good distance and not to explore but it was obvious that the heated, steaming ground was dangerous.  This area is where Steamboat Geyer is located and it is the tallest in the world!  It didn’t erupt when I was there… ( whimper and sad face)

 

This one is called “Minute”.  It used to go off every 60 seconds!  Until… humans back in the late 1940s used to throw things in it like coin and rock.  It clogged the opening and now it hasn’t erupted in several years!  Sorry to be a downer, but it proves that humans can sometimes make a mess of nature.

Of course we had to take a look at the old geezer, I mean Old Faithful, which is the worlds best know geyser for it’s consistency in eruptions.  We wait…

 

Then, the next stop was Grand Canyon!

Wait a minute!

We already did that and it is a long ways away!  I protested as I did not want to backtrack to Arizona when I was really enjoying Wyoming.  I was happy to find out that Yellowstone has its’ own Grand Canyon.  This adventure was a steep trail down to what is called “Lower Falls” and it leads you to an incredible view right into the canyon.  The rock colors were totally cool and it was one of my most favorite places in the park.

Did I mention that it was kindda cold here?  Maybe I was just being a whimp because my hair has not fully grown back yet, but it was down in the 30s at night.  The campground was a bit icy so I just hung out on “high ground”while Humom set up the fort.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On to Montana!